


Divergence

by Suzanne1910



Category: Vinland Saga (Anime), Vinland Saga (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-29
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:41:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22011994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Suzanne1910/pseuds/Suzanne1910
Summary: One day Thorfinn wakes up in his teenager body instead of being in his way to Vinland.Askeladd is alive, Canute is not a king and he's in the middle of a campaign that he knows is going to have a bloody end. But he knows a thing for sure, he still wants to have violence as the last choice.
Relationships: Canute/Thorfinn (Vinland Saga)
Comments: 48
Kudos: 213





	1. Revenge

**Author's Note:**

> I stole this prompt from @ThemyMinamino in Twitter (pls follow them, their thornute art is the best)  
> If you're reading this, sorry, i wanted to tell you i liked your idea but I didn't want to create fake expectations or making you feel uncomfortable and ended just doing this hahaha :(

He heard himself scream, his hands uselessly trying to grasp to something. Cool drops of sweat slipped through his face, but the feeling was natural to him after years of nightmares. He tried to forget the still fresh memories to be able to regulate his troubled breathing, but it was hard when the sensation of fell down from a cliff was still crawling through his skin. After a moment he realized that that affirmation wasn't right.  
No... not his skin, his head? It felt strangely itchy. 

That was the first red flag. The second was scratch it and feel long locks of hair when he was sure it was shorter after Ylva cut it. 

"What?" not just a finger or even two fingers longer, it reached his shoulders and it was messy. Like when he was... 

That's when the third flag showed up, he was in a forest, not in Leif's boat, and it was a place he recognized easily: Wales.

He immediately reclined in the tree feeling dizzy. It didn't help that his eyes caught up with that pair of boots he used to like, neither the familiar weight of the knives ready to be draw from their sheaths.  
Was this the past?  
Or rather, his slavery years and his plans to go to Vinland were nothing but a long dream?

The latter sounded more reasonable, of course, but it was also harder to accept. Those years felt too real to be just a fever dream. But he couldn't deny that this was his 17-year-old self. 

He stood up trying to make sense to what was happening, cleaning the sweat with the back of his arm.

Thorfinn could tell that there was still time before the daybreak, this was exactly the hour when Askeladd used to wake up (way before his men) and sit near the fire. He apparently enjoyed to be alone without the fuss that always accompanied a band of vikings.  
Thorfinn carefully went towards where he thought the fire would be. In the bottom he just wanted a small confirmation of where he was.

Fortune was on his side because Askeladd was indeed in front of the fire, a horn of booze in his right hand. He had his eyes closed but he knew in an instant that there was someone there and who that someone was. 

"It's too early to stalk your prey, don't you think, kid?" the mockery in that voice sounded so nostalgic to Thorfinn that felt unreal for a bit.

Askeladd opened his eyes and he couldn't even pretend he hated him, because Thorfinn was genuinely relieved that the bastard that killed his father was still alive.

.  
.  
.  
.  
.

11 years were more than enough for Askeladd to know a person like the back of his hand, or that's what he thought.

Thors was the first thing which crossed his mind after looking his face. He had exactly the same eyes and his face looked so relaxed that he seemed a completely different person. This was not normal of course, but it wasn't necessarily bad.

"What happened to you, Thorfinn?" he found himself asking, looking the kid's face with even more detail. He knew for a fact that that wasn't the face of someone who would answer with an evasive once a question was formulated. Which was quite the opposite to the Thorfinn that went to sleep just a while ago, he would have call him 'fucking baldy' and storm out there. 

"I had a... dream." Thorfinn said, sitting in front of him like it was the most natural thing to do. The word dream came with some parsimony, like he was tasting it while pronouncing it. 

"A dream?"

"Yes. A lot happened." he was as bad with words as always at least, that was reassuring in way, but he wasn't even half of aggressive with his answers.

"I don't want to play the counselor role, brat..." Askeladd saw the liquid in his horn balance slowly before giving it a new sip. "... But you don't seem to be thinking that was a dream."

He nailed it judging by the expression he had.  
Askeladd laughed at him, serving him booze in a cup. Thorfinn surprisingly accepted the offer and took the cup with both hands, watching it as if the bottom had all the answers to his questions. 

They fell in silence now that Thorfinn seemed to be in deep meditation. He did the same, always watching the kind of face Thorfinn had. There weren't too many possibilities of what would inspire a change like this, that's for sure.  
A dream, huh?  
A dream so real to make a person change. It didn't sound as wild as he thought thanks to Thorfinn. The boy was so crazy that it was almost plausible.

He wanted to ask for the dream, but something deep inside refrained him to do so. Why? He couldn't tell, but since he was a kid he learnt to obey his instincts and this time wasn't going to be the exception.

He threw the rest of the liquor to the soil, and raised from his place.

"Well, time to work. Go to wake up prince Canute, Thorfinn. We have to start marching." he stretched himself until he heard a crack coming from his back. "That reward won't come if you keep drinking booze all day."

That's when it happened. 

"Reward?" he muttered.  
Thorfinn blinked slowly with his eyes wide open and after what seemed an eternity (he was starting to wonder if he should spell what reward meant) he chuckled. Not a sarcastic laugh or a smirk. 

And the obvious truth hit him in the face. 

"I know this is weird but the thing is... I really don't want to kill you anymore." 

Maybe Ragnarok was happening right now, that was more believable than what he just witnessed.


	2. Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the comments and kudos! I never expected that reaction to this. I'm totally honest when I say all of them made me really happy :') 
> 
> I wanted to write a peaceful chapter before entering to the first conflict, so here is this!  
> Hope you all enjoy it ^^

"The weather is getting colder, Askeladd! If we continue by land a snowstorm will delay us before we reach Mercia!!" Ragnar was by nature a frenzied man, but the way Askeladd simply dismissed him with a movement of his hand was putting every single of his nerves on fire. He has never been good at hiding his annoyance. 

Canute was uncomfortable with the idea of going by land too, of course. He was shy not silly, but he won't raise his voice to say so. Besides, he had more things to think about. The treaty he had to sign before they leave Wales being one of them.

Thinking on it from a strategic point of view, it was possible to maintain the peace they were asking. Wales wasn't a rich land, the investment really won't match the reward if they attempted an invasion.  
But his father was unpredictable, if he wanted to attack Wales for any reason he couldn't assure he will be capable of stopping him and that was the main problem.  
He could only wish for time to stop. That the day to sign the treaty was delayed as much as possible, he wanted to think he could hide from that problem. 

Unfortunately time was against him. They reached Buellt by midday. The caravan stopped then to let the men recover their weapons as Asser promised, and Ragnar stood up immediately after. 

"Please wait for me here, your highness. I will try to reason with that savage."

Canute knew for a fact that there was nothing Ragnar could do. 'That savage' was completely confident in his plan, just like he was confident they could escape Thorkell. He must be seeing something they couldn't again. 

Askeladd was an interesting man but they knew nothing about him. If Canute allowed himself to be guided merely for a hutch, he will say he wasn't doing this for money like the rest of the men. Maybe he aspired to be part of his father's army.

He played with his hair thinking on that. If that was the case... Would his father reward Askeladd with a place in his army?  
Not only that, but will he reward his men greatly once they arrived in Gainsborough? Would he be happy?

It was natural for a father to be overjoyed about the return of a son who was so close to death. It was normal.  
He felt a twist in his stomach, something dark climbing to his throat.

He failed after all. 4,000 men killed in London by only 500 of Thorkell's men.  
Maybe a father would be a happy, but what about a King?

"Canute." an apple was in front of him, he looked up seeing that Thorfinn was the person offering it. The memories of the fight they had yesterday removed the dark thoughts about his father. "You haven't eat."

"You're oddly polite today." he said, but he took the apple. He saw Thorfinn stay in silence while he took another apple for himself. He sat down without any other word and Canute assumed he just decided to ignore him.

How rude. His blood boiled but he didn't want to make a scene again. 

"I have to apologize for what happened yesterday." Thorfinn talked before he got more angry "I was rude, it won't happen again."

Thorfinn was looking at him directly in the eyes, his expression so serious that anyone who saw it would assume the offense he committed was kill his sister. It made Canute feel like a stubborn child.

"D-dont get troubled by it, my behavior wasn't exemplary either." he directed his attention to the apple. "It's just water under the bridge now." he added trying to sound mature and recover some face from the stammer.

"Thank you." Thorfinn said, the relief painted in his face as clear as water. The tension from a moment ago lifted like it was nothing but morning mist. Canute gave the apple a bite. 

Ragnar was still discussing, his rough voice sounded even over the laughs of the vikings. Askeladd was just tired, even from the wagon he could notice he was treating Ragnar like a stubborn child. He guessed right, Ragnar won't be able to convince him of anything.

"Thorfinn, how long have you been in Askeladd's band? " he found himself asking taking advantage of the friendly environment that just raised between them. 

He asked a hard question, or that was the conclusion he could drawn judging by how Thorfinn's face showed deep meditation suddenly. 

"I didn't keep a count," He replied casually, as if that detail by itself wasn't sad at all. "but I think I was 5 or 6 when I joined, counting the winters from that point... maybe 10 or 11 years." 

"Eleven years..." without mentioning he joined when he was nothing but a child. Maybe that was why his mood could change so drastically, the battlefield must have marked him. 

"Why did you want to know?" 

"Ah, yes. In those 11 years, how many times have you and Askeladd's band did a job here?" 

Thorfinn raised his eyebrows while his brown eyes opened in a surprised expression. He probably found his question weird. He recovered a moment later and answered calmly. 

"This is the first time." 

Now it was his turn to find Thorfinn's words strange. 

"But Askeladd seems quiet knowledgeable on the terrain, and is familiar to high rank people and their language. I would expect that you had business here in Wales at least once a year."

Thorfinn's only answer to that was a nood. He noticed even more confused how Thorfinn's face got dark really quickly. It wasn't scary by any means, it was the kind of dark that made him get worried about what could be happening in his mind instead.  
But before he could say any other word Ragnar arrived, so agitated that Canute could do nothing but focus on him and his heavy breathing. 

"Who does he think he is?" he said between gritted teeth, Askeladd's order to advance just made Ragnar's mood get worse. "He's too arrogant for a simple mercenary."

He had to agree with it. Askeladd really didn't behave as a simple mercenary. Maybe he wasn't. Canute signed, he ate a bit more. He was tired of not being able to trust people, this whole situation was pointless. 

.  
.  
.

The next time he got a chance to talk with Thorfinn, without worrying about someone else, was that same night.

He heard Ragnar instructing Thorfinn to take proper care of him, and Thorfinn assured that he had really sharp senses.  
Canute believed him. The time when they were attacked in Brycheiniog was a perfect proof of that statement and Ragnar knew it.  
After all, the night after the incident, they talked about what happened.  
Ragnar expressed himself highly of Thorfinn, and that meant a lot when the boy wasn't exactly respectful with him and Ragnar didn't even bother in complain about it, too busy in praising his fighting skills.

He heard how the man gave Thorfinn two or three more orders that made Canute smile. "Make sure you don't yell at his highness to wake him up." and things like that.  
Ragnar really was like a protective father. It made him feel warm, safe; even in that country full of danger and justified distrust. 

Ragnar finally left, leaving the place in deep silence only slightly broken by the insects of the forest and what he supposed were the snores of the vikings sleeping around him. The sound was sedative and he fell asleep almost instantly. 

He woke up later when the night was specially dark. He heard something comparable to an animal's growl, it came from outside of his tent.  
The first thing that came to his tired mind was an attack but he didn't hear too much movement, so it wasn't a fight.  
Canute closed his eyes, listening attentively and he arrived to the conclusion that it was only Thorfinn. Maybe he was having a nightmare.

He was still sleepy but honestly he didn't believe he could return to sleep again with all that noise, besides Thorfinn surely wasn't having a nice time. So he slowly raised and crawled outside of his tent with the objective of waking up his guard and return to sleep. 

That was the plan, but Thorfinn proved once more that his senses were hardly human and woke up before he could even touch his arm. He looked terrified, his face covered in sweat.

"You were having a bad dream." Canute said as an explanation.

Thorfinn started to regulate his breathing and nodded. Canute tried to give him space but his curiosity took the best of him, sitting in the ground he asked:

"Do you have them often?"

"What?"

"The nightmares. You seem to know how to calm yourself easily." he said, pointing at how just a small amount of time had passed and Thorfinn was already like nothing happened, except for the sweat. 

Thorfinn nodded again. 

"This one seems a bit different, though. Before, I dreamed about my father's dead, or a distant land... This nightmare is a little too long." 

"Too long?"

"Like they are memories instead, like I'm dreaming about a whole different life."

"I have never heard of something as what you describe before. But is that 'life' so horrible to get you so agitated?"

"Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. It doesn't matter, I forget everything during the day. " Thorfinn rubbed his face roughly "I'm sorry I woke you up. " he chuckled. "Ragnar told me I shouldn't wake you yelling and it's the first thing I did."

"You weren't yelling" then he added, trying to joke. "so you are safe for now."

They fell in silence. Thorfinn's eyes were focused in something beyond the forest, Canute wondered if his eyes were also better than his own. It sounded really possible.  
Or maybe he was just raving, he probably needed a little more of sleep. 

"Canute, what do you think about violence?" 

Thorfinn really never failed in surprise him, that was indeed a sudden question, definitely not the conversation he expected to have. But since Thorfinn opened himself a bit it just seemed fair to open himself too.

"I despite it. I know it's not what I'm supposed to say"

"No, I think the same." Yes, Thorfinn really never failed in surprise him. Those weren't the words of a mercenary, the memories of him slicing the soldier's throat when they first met were more present than before. "In that dream, I think I wanted to find an alternative but I cannot quiet remember the answer. I was thinking, maybe those dreams can be a sign..."

An alternative of violence?  
Was that possible? 

Thorfinn was serious, he didn't seem to want to take him for a fool and laugh at him after.

He was used to listen to this kind of things but it was always from Christian priests, not Vikings and Thorfinn didn't seem to be a devote in secret. And he didn't talk about those things like something abstract and poetic but the opposite, like it was a tangible object in front of them.

"Maybe you don't remember because you have to find the answer yourself." Canute said after a long moment of silence. 

Thorfinn saw him as if a third eye just popped from between his eyebrows and then started to laugh. It was a genuine one, he had never seen the boy laughing like that. He probably would have appreciate it a bit more if the didn't feel ashamed and therefore irritated. 

"Did I say something funny?" 

Thorfinn slowly stopped, but the smile didn't disappear, he looked so tender that Canute's irritations started to go away quicker than he wanted. This was the second time it happened. 

"No, it's the opposite, you're right. I have been depending too much in this dream." that tenderness was also in his eyes and Canute couldn't hold himself from smiling too. "Thank you, your highness." 

He couldn't even get irritated by the way he pronounced the tittle (full of mockery, how insolent) because he realized then. Thorfinn perhaps was the closest thing to a friend he had had in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter like 4 times with 4 different povs and this is the one I liked the most. The others are now in Valhalla, and they allowed me to read more about Wales' history and other important stuff that I may use later, their sacrifice will be remembered. 
> 
> Anyways, thank you for reading!


	3. Duel

This was perhaps the worst path in all Powys and thus the most lonely one, it was to be expected that they would need to push the wagon through the hard crags of the mountain, and yet there were men complaining about having to push that big thing. It was going to be funny to see them try to unblock that wagon once it had the supplies the ruler of that kingdom prepared for them. Mercia was going to be interesting enough.  
The weather there was going to be more than ruthless with them, soon they will face the winter and Askeladd knew he won't heard the end of it once Ragnar felt the first snowflake in that pointy head. But it was okay, those were hardships that came with the job.

He heard growls of fustration, seems like that mountain of solid rock was proving to be more challenging than the mud they were used to.

"No, wait. Push from that side first, the wheel will break." Askeladd raised his eyebrows, seeing Thorfinn commanding was already weird enough but seeing the men obeying him was another whole thing, even the most simple minded nordic warrior would notice that his instructions were making easier the task. He had been pushing with the rest from the beginning but he also had been always the quiet type who would only talk when he considered it was absolutely necessary to put his input in the table. That didn't change at least. 

He found himself silently observing him again, he couldn't help it, not after what Thorfinn said to him that day. 

'I know this is weird but the thing is... I really don't want to kill you anymore. But I will keep my word and help you to escort Canute until we reach Gainsborough.'

It was not only the fact that he abandoned the thought of revenge like it was nothing, when Askeladd knew that Thorfinn had nothing in his mind but that for years, but also how that wording implied that he knew what he was going to do once he left Gainsborough.

Askeladd wasn't going to lie to himself, it made him awfully curious.  
What was he planning to do?  
Something really told him that return to his homeland was too easy. He had Thors' eyes but he knew there was something different with him as well, there was another kind of potential on him, he could go even farther than his father ever could. And that made Askeladd really wonder if he should place his bet in Thorfinn instead.

It wasn't a simple decision thought, because even when his instinct was pointing that possibility it also pointed at Canute. It was telling him that all what he was looking for was hidden in the prince as well, and he also had the advantage that gave him his bloodline. Of course the bet with him was risky, so risky that he was now about to step in enemy land for something that was so frail that could crumble in his hands in seconds.

Difficulties aside, Askeladd couldn't ignore he had two paths, and at this point of his life! It seemed a cruel joke of destiny after expending years and years waiting and seeing how he misjudged someone or simply the person who was perfect would choose death.

"He's really helpful when he's not trying to kill you." Bjorn laughed at his side.  
Askeladd saw how the wagon was now being pulled smoothly by the horses. The brat was now cleaning the sweat in his forehead, he noticed he was talking with Canute. 

"That hot blood in his head was killing his brain." he replied moving on, there was no time for more delays, there was not even time for him thinking and re thinking stuff. He was just going to do what he had always been doing. He will observe and take the opportunity once it showed up... and if it never showed in front of him he would simply create it with his own hands.

They just took 200 more steps when it started to snow. 

.  
.  
.  
.

They finished to fill the wagon with supplies before they thought, there weren't a lot of them but they weren't a few either. Thorfinn assumed it was what it was to be expected from a small kingdom on winter. The reason why they were receiving them in the first place was the treaty Canute was signing in that moment in the tent.

Canute seemed quiet unwilling to do it when they carried him to finally give his word after that journey, he even felt bad for him. He knew the boy was more than happy of not provoking any kind of war in his whole life so it was disturbing to wonder why he was resisting that hard, with a expression more alike to a sheep about to be killed than anything else. It reminded him when Askeladd asked him to insult Asser.  
Thorfinn smiled at the memory.  
It really felt like it was a long time ago since that day.  
The smiled faded when his memories went back days before that, when he sliced de throat of that man in the forest or even before.  
This world was unequivocally built around violence, no matter if he didn't desire it, that just how things were done. His mind lingered once again in what he was going to do if they were ambushed in Mercia. He didn't have any will to fight, but that didn't meant he was willing to just let Canute die. It was hard.  
He wondered if there was even an answer to his questions. 

He raised his eyes when he heard the usual yelling, it was Ragnar coming out of the tend, of course, he was quickly followed by Askeladd and Canute.

"Your highness, please go to your tent. You might get sick." Thorfinn had to agree with him, not because of the weather but because Canute seemed so tired that he wouldn't be surprised if he felt asleep right there or if he threw up. He was really a frail man. "Thorfinn." Ragnar continued "please accompany him. I will talk with Askeladd a bit more"

Askeladd had the most annoyed face he had made in years. But seeing that he didn't talk against the plan he obeyed.

"This was a nightmare." Canute muttered, even thought he was pretty sure it wasn't directed at him.

Thorfinn nodded, because he also felt it even if it was for different reasons. Since they entered Mercia he couldn't shake the feeling that he was surrounded by an invisible enemy.

.  
.  
.

That sensation of being surrounded by danger only increased with each step they took. Thorfinn was tense, and even when he promised himself to stop thinking in this nightmare he recreated himself in the sensation it left to him more than once because it was similar to what he was feeling while walking in that place. Dread filled him, he didn't remember but there was something in that place that was wrong, very wrong.

And then it happened.

"What I'm trying to tell you is luck is not in your side anymore." He heard Ragnar's voice loud and clear.

He stopped feeling the snow hitting him in the face. What's more, he stopped feeling the world around him, the floor disappeared, a dizziness washed over him along with a flow of coldness that dropped in his stomach like a stone.  
Suddenly that nightmare, or at least part of it came to him as clear as day. As if it was happening just before him at that moment.  
He could hear them, the cries.  
He could see it, the blood.  
The beg of a father for his children.  
The corpses.

This was the place, how could he forgot? Thorfinn couldn't hate himself more, if he remembered before.... maybe if he...

"T-Thorfinn? Are you okay, Thorfinn?" Canute was at his side, he noticed that at some point he felt to his knees in the snow.

"What's wrong, Thorfinn? Are you feeling bad?" Askeladd laughed. "You know I will leave you behind if necessary if that's the... "

He didn't know what kind of face he had just know but Askeladd suddenly stopped his mockery.  
What was he supposed to do? Tell him to not kill the villagers? Askeladd and even himself had been doing it for years now. And under what grounds, a dream?

He slowly rised. What would be the best choice? His mind felt numb and the daggers in his waist weighted more than ever. 

"Do I have to ask twice?" Askeladd was dead serious this time. "What's wrong, Thorfinn?" 

Thorfinn stood up, and breathed deeply. The world around him in silence now, the vikings surely too startled to talk, but he didn't bother in looking at them, he stared directly at Askeladd eyes. 

"You know, the last man who saw me like that is dead now." Askeladd commented casually. 

"Are you going to kill the people in the village ahead?" 

Ragnar choked in his own saliva, he didn't know about what Askeladd was planning. 

"What...?" was all what Canute muttered. 

"I'm kinda interested in how do you know that there's a village ahead when I just sent two men to check that for me." Askeladd took two steps to him. "But I'm more curious in knowing why do you care. Just before coming to Wales we did exactly the same thing, don't you remember, Thorfinn?" 

No, he can't deny that. He even ignored when a woman was being...  
It was scary how all those years being surrounded by horror made him think that it was normal.  
He clutched his fists. He didn't even remember beyond this. If those were really memories or prophesies then what else did he do? 

"Don't take this so seriously, brat. There's no other choice" 

"Are you really planning on..." Willybald, surprisingly, talked. RagnaI in the contrary was speechless, maybe thinking in what Askeladd said, already measuring the extend of the mercenary's actions. 

"Of course. We need a warm place and food." then he directed to Thorfinn. "You see, we are more than one hundred, including His Highness. His arrival to Gainsborough can assure peace in the long run. Thinking it like that doesn't it seem that... let's say, 60 to 70 villagers are a small number? Doesn't it sound logic?" 

It did, but the imagine of the father begging for his family was still in his mind, burning like a wound. "We can ask that village for cooperation..." he started to reply. 

"Oi, Oi, were you sleeping the whole time? Too busy hunting for the prince? They hate Vikings, Thorfinn. Why would they cooperate with us?" Askeladd was back on mocking him. 

That was indeed the problem, Thorfinn was not as smart as Askeladd that was a fact, if the man said that there was no other choice then maybe there wasn't any choice. Does that mean that that alternative to violence didn't exist after all, was kill villagers the only solution in a circumstance like that? 

"They can see the treat we represent and we can negotiate from that point with them." he tried once more. 

"You don't quiet understand the point." Askeladd said. "We need food and shelter, they don't trust in us and not only we risk a surprise attack but that they alert the guard on Mercia and they contact Thorkell's army."

"They are probably Christians, they will honor their word if they give it to a christian priest." at that point the vikings started whispering, it didn't sound like laughs but rather like genuine confusion. They were used to Askeladd and Thorfinn having confrontations but it was always with duels and the reason were never about showing mercy.

"Are you aware that if we take that half assed plan of yours we will need to take more precautions than the ones we would take just killing them?"

Thorfinn nodded.

"Really? We will need to set guards around the perimeter to be sure no one scapes, we will share the food and if something goes wrong Thorkell will catch us. I'm going to ask again. Are you aware of how bothersome is that plan of yours?"

"Yes" Thorfinn said this time.

The man remained silent for a bit, watching him attentive the same way he did when he was seeing a specially hard objective.

And then he started laughing, loud but it sounded so out of place that not even Bjorn laughed with him this time. Askeladd stopped slowly after what seemed an eternity, letting out short puffs.  
He stared at Thorfinn the whole time, his lips curved with malice.

"Well, kill me." he wasn't joking, Askeladd was removing his sword from his sheath. 

"I..."

"Yes, yes, you don't want to kill me, I heard you the first time. But you see, we are warriors. Strength is what we obey, if you want to prove yourself worthy of giving this men orders as annoying as those then you should at least get rid off the leader, don't you think?" upon seeing Thorfinn remaining completely freezed he added. "One life for the life of the villagers, it's not that hard." 

Thorfinn still didn't move. Askeladd rolled his eyes and without warning he attempted to hit him with his sword. The boy backed up quickly, he unsheated his knives automatically, like an old habit. 

"Hey, Askeladd, stop joking around." Bjorn said. 

"Does this seem like a joke, because it's not for me and certainly not for him" 

Even when the snow was hitting them, Thorfinn felt sweat dripping across his forehead. What was he supposed to do? His brain wasn't working as it should, and Askeladd was getting near to him slowly but surely. 

Another slash, Thorfinn jumped but something in the path made him trimp. He fell in his back making his head bump hard, not even the fresh snow helped. 

"Wait, Askeladd..." Canute was more than scared right now, his voice trembling but sounding with some authority he probably summoned with all his strength. He attempted to be in Askeladd's way but the man was quicker and extended his arm before he could even be in front of him. The edge in Canute's throat. 

"Askeladd, YOU..!!" Ragnar immediately interfered after seeing the prince being threatened. 

"Your Highness, I advice you to don't put that nose of yours on this." Askeladd's face was dark, his eyes fixed in the boy trying to raise up after the hit. "This is a problem with my band of mercenaries, it doesn't concern you" 

Not even Ragnar dared to speak this time. The tone in Askeladd was carried with severity, his voice deep. 

"Are you going to stand up, Thorfinn? Don't you want to save them?" he laughed "Be the hero?" 

Thorfinn saw the upcoming slash and stood up immediately even when his head hurted. He was sure there was blood dripping from a new cut. 

"Now that I think about it you have always had that habit, playing the hero when you shouldn't."

Askeladd was talking but in any moment he stopped attacking him, he was in a tight spot. It was more than obvious that if he didn't respond the attacks Askeladd will corner him, and then what?  
Shortly just blocking was too hard, the snow was making the movement even more difficult and Askeladd wasn't an easy opponent to begin with. 

"Come on, Thorfinn." he yelled at his face, his back hit a wall, he felt the sharp pain in his head increase. "Is that really all what you can do, son of Thors?" But suddenly that didn't matter. 

Thorfinn opened his eyes in surprise. It was like he was there for a moment, again in Faroe Islands. He could see him. Thors. He throwing the sword in the sea, his words as heavy as the time when he pronounced them.  
He had thought on them since he was a child but it was now, under a new light gifted by that vision he had in dreams that he understood its whole meaning.  
That was his answer. 

He dropped the knives in that instant. 

Askeladd didn't expect that at all and he halted, too surprised to be able to react on time. Thorfinn immediately took advantage of that small opening to disarm him giving an accurate hit in his wrist. The sword slipped from his hand falling in some place in the darkness and the snow. 

The vikings were in silence again, without believing what just happened. Not only because Askeladd had been defeated when they well knew he was almost invincible but also because that last movement was absurd for them. Those who were veterans in Askeladd's band would think how similar was this to the only time when Askeladd was defeated. 

Soon a chuckle broke the tense silence. The only one capable of laughing in a situation like this was Askeladd of course. 

"Ah, Ah, I'm really getting old, right? Seeing a brat growing up is really too much." Askeladd laughed "But it's also good, see how a child can be just like a father." he added. 

Thorfinn smiled back, knowing that this time arrows wouldn't fly from above to finish that pseudo duel they had.

The prince was astonished, mainly because Thorfinn wasn't even angry after being hit by Askeladd without apparent reason. Seems like the conversation they had that one night wasn't on vain, that last movement really showed that Thorfinn didn't liked violence as he said. It would be the first time he saw something like that, he couldn't help but feel a little sparkle on himself. This meant he found his answer in a way, if it was really something he could use then that stupid conflict waiting for him on Gainsborough...

... but for now he would focus in the man in front of him, that one who was unfastening the belts that secured the sheaths of his knives, and was dropping them on the snow. 

"Askeladd, I gonna tell you how I knew there was a village ahead"

Askeladd's eyes shined with interest, the same playful smile he had when things were specially difficult dancing in his lips.

"Oh, now that's is interesting. But what if we put that silly plan you had in action first. I'm freezing here"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was... a hard chapter to write, but i liked to do it, it was fun.  
> I know this is such a typical thing to say but im really grateful for your comments, they really made ne happy and gave me the strength to end writing this. Im so lucky :')


End file.
